This past Friday, January 24th, I held my first knitting meditation workshop at Pick Up Every Stitch. Having my first class during the new moon allowed me to benefit from the moon’s growing energy to sow the seeds of this long-term project, as I will be teaching this class regularly.
During the workshop, I showed my students how to use the magic square, an ancient Chinese grid of numbers, to properly align their feet. The magic square can be used to align every part of your body. By doing so, you are able to navigate the internal space of your body while orienting yourself in time and space. I also taught about intention knitting, breathing exercises, and knitting mantras, as I talked about in my previous blog post, Meditation Knitting.
After a thirty minute knitting meditation session, everyone shared how they felt about the experience. Each expressed how truly different it felt from their normal knitting practice. Felicia, the owner of Pick Up Every Stitch, took part in the workshop and she expressed how relaxing the class was for her:
“I almost fell asleep twice I was so relaxed. My knitting was a lot different and for the first time I was focused on every stitch, moving slowly, and it flowed. I felt like it was flowing because I was so focused on what I was doing.”
I’ll be holding regular knitting meditation workshops on Fridays at Pick Up Every Stitch in Mt. Kisco, New York. If you’re interested in participating, simply call the store to reserve your place at (914) 864-2828.
If knitting isn’t a hobby you’re interested in, trying something new allows you to be fully mindful of what you’re doing as you are currently learning. Even taking an activity and adding elements of meditation will allow you to enjoy all the benefits of traditional mediation while combining it with your daily life more easily. As long as you’re able to be mindful, you’ll be able to full enjoy everything life has to offer.
